PPLEASE NOTE, OUR RESTAURNATS LOCATED DOWNTOWN CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON D.C. WILL BE CLOSED SATURDAY, JUNE 6.

Posted on June, 4 2020.

We haven’t said a lot these past few days. We stand unequivocally with Black Americans and the tens of thousands of people of conscience demanding that we live up to our values as a nation. But it is the voices of those who have suffered the injuries of systemic racism that must be heard right now. We are listening intently. As we face the indisputable truth that we can do better, we reflect on how we can best drive meaningful change within our own organization and communities.

We are starting with a thorough review of our corporate giving strategies to ensure that we are focused on efforts to eliminate social injustice and improve lives in Black communities and communities of People of Color. We are making an immediate contribution to the NAACP LDF. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans.

We know that actions speak louder than words and that we have a lot of work to do. It's a start. We pledge to move with deliberate speed and look forward to reporting back to you on our efforts.

R.J. Melman
President

Lettuce Entertain You cares greatly about the health and safety of its employees and guests. In the last few weeks, we have closely monitored developments in the current COVID-19 outbreak and have initiated enhanced protocols to reduce opportunities for the spread of this virus in all of our restaurants and offices. Our actions are focused on guidance from the CDC along with state and local resources, and we continue to rely on their leadership. We are now facing a situation in which our actions can make a difference, not only to the health and safety of our employees and guests but also to our communities.

The Holiday Bonus cards expired as of April 15 and cannot be used at this time. However, once ALL of our dining rooms are open again for full-service dining, we plan to honor the Holiday Bonus cards for an additional 30 days. At that time, you will have four weeks to use the cards for dine in or carryout. As soon as we get clarity on when we can fully reopen, we will send a communication outlining the dates of the 30 day extension period.
Also, please keep in mind that the Holiday Bonus cards can be used any year between January 2 - April 15. If you are still unable to use the cards during the 30 day extension, please hang onto them and you can use them again next year, January 2 - April 15, 2021.
Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you all soon.

Please keep in mind that the Holiday Bonus cards can be used any year between January 2nd - April 15th. The Holiday Bonus cards can also be used for carryout up to April 15th at participating restaurants during the government mandated shutdowns.

We hope that this extension gives you more time to use your cards for carryout and dining in once we re-open. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and send a communication when we have confirmed the new dates. Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you soon.

Many of you have asked how you can support our teams, we have set up a site to collect funds that will benefit our hardworking staff Employee Relief Fund

Based on direction from governmental agencies and as part of our ongoing effort to slow the community transmission of COVID-19, LEYE will temporarily close additional locations. Effective Tuesday, March 17, 2020, all Lettuce locations will close to dine-in guests until we are permitted to re-open by the applicable government authority.

We will reevaluate our options going forward based upon guidance and direction from health and government officials. In the meantime, we strongly encourage everyone to protect themselves and others by continuing to follow CDC guidelines (including social distancing, frequent handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes with a tissue, and staying home if ill) to combat community transmission.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to contact us.

What’s Hot in Hot Sauce

Nov 1, 2017

Welcome to Quality Crab & Oyster Bah, our East Coast oyster Mecca dedicated to serving up the freshest seafood and oysters in Lincoln Park. Did you know that past the oyster bar and through the dining room there is a hot sauce wall? Yes, an entire wall dedicated to the hot, tangy, sometimes complex condiment that is good on (almost) everything, from oysters and stuffies to calamari and chowder.

It’s here, at the “Hot Sauce Wall,” you will discover more than 75 different varieties of hot sauce. This chef-curated collection spotlights different styles, producers and types of peppers ranging in flavors and textures. But perhaps most notable, the three original hot sauces made in-house at Quality Crab & Oyster Bah. Executive Chef, Donny Farrell is our in-house hot sauce expert and he dished on all things hot sauce – the funky, the spicy and the original – because if the Queen Bey (Beyoncé) is onboard with this condiment trend (“I got hot sauce in my bag. Swag.”), then so are we.

Chef Donny’s Four Letter Hot Sauce

Chef Farrell’s passion for hot sauce started as a hobby.

It started when a good friend and fellow sous chef and I were working together in 2014 and we started getting into fermentation. We made a batch of fermented hot sauce and it was amazing. It was just curiosity originally then we became obsessed and started making hot sauce with every pepper we could get our hands on. We learned that all peppers react differently to the fermentation process but that is what’s so amazing about it. We use the same recipe and same fermentation time, but there is such a contrast in flavor, viscosity, sweetness and heat level depending on the pepper.

His passion then flourished into a Quality Crab & Oyster Bah main attraction and Four Lettuce Hot Sauce was born.

“The name evolved from when I was young. I was a difficult child and would often act out to get a response from others around me, including the use of “spicy” language. In an effort to discourage my four-letter words, my parents would drop hot sauce on my tongue when I used profanity. Initially, this parental tactic was successful, as I feared being summoned to the kitchen for the inevitable sting. But soon after, I grew to like hot sauce. Now Four Letter Hot Sauce is a passion of mine. Curtailing my use of profanity is still a work in progress,” says Chef Donny.

Four Letter Hot Sauce at Quality Crab & Oyster Bah

Behold, the great wall of hot sauce.

Sit down, grab a glass of wine or a cocktail. Order up your favorite seafood dishes and then we invite you to come pick out which hot sauce you’d like to use.

The wall provides our guests with an interactive experience, and our hope is that with the range of flavors represented in the different sauces, they will walk back to their seats and be able to try something new.

We have a vast variety of sauces here at Oyster from traditional, Asian-influenced ones to mustard-based and everything in between.

The Funky…Four Letter Hot Sauce is fully fermented. Each pepper reacts differently to the fermentation process offering a unique flavor. During the process of fermentation each pepper takes on a deeper flavor. The funkiest of the Four Letter flavors is the banana pepper which takes on a slightly sour but well balanced taste. Did you know that fermenting also lends digestive health benefits?

The Hot…We have a handful of super spicy sauces that get their kick mainly from habanero peppers. At Oyster, we try not to focus too much on the “kick-your-a$$” spicy sauces because it tends to take away from the flavor of the food.

The Original…You’ll taste it here first. The newest (and perhaps our proudest) concoctions were created in our own kitchen. We’ve added three new flavors: jalapeño, banana pepper and fresno pepper.

The Trendy…Instead of buying the big name brands, we are making an effort to support local companies who are using local Chicago ingredients. Just like the craft beer movement or the farm-to-table craze, hot sauce is having a locally sourced moment.

What do we serve it on?

You can enjoy chef’s Four Letter Hot Sauce on a variety of food and drinking including the Clam Chowder, French Style Muscles, or Quality Crab & Oyster Bah’s signature Michelada.

Seaside’s Fried Chicken and Waffles with Hot Sauce Maple Syrup

Quality Crab & Oyster Bah’s Michelada with Four Letter Hot Sauce

If you want to try creating your own hot sauce at home, here are some tips from our experts.

1. Decide what pepper to use. We prefer to use just one pepper in each sauce to keep the taste true to the actual pepper.

2. If you want a spicier hot sauce, we recommend using habenero, ghost, piri piri, or even Thai chili peppers.

3. To adjust the sweetness of your sauce, use sweeteners like sugar, honey or agave.

4. Most hot sauces use vingear as an acid but you can get creative with it. Try mustard or fresh lime or lemon juice as an alternative.

5. Last but certainly not least, make sure your hot sauce is seasoned properly and well balanced so it doesn’t over power the food you serve it with.